Word@Work 1Pet24 - 1 Peter 2:11-12
Published: Thu, 05/28/09
Word@Work from BeaconLight
CULTURAL IDENTITY
1 Peter 2:11-12 Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. (NIV)
It is not wrong to enjoy a cultural identity. With the shrinkage of our world into a global village, aided by rapid travel, communications, migration and the growth of multinational business organisations, we humanly long to retreat into something special that reminds us of home and our 'roots'. Food, dress, language, dialect and accent all help to shape our understanding of where we have come from. But the Christian should be much more concerned about the culture of heaven - where we are going to. We are to live as foreigners in this sinful world, because our true home is with our Heavenly Father. It is His values which should shape our lives as we await Jesus' return.
No earthbound passion or sinful desire will have any place where Jesus reigns. So, Christians are to consider their sinful desires as foreign to them, and reject them (cf Rom 6:11-14). They are to say 'No' to everything that is not of God, and become self-controlled (cf Titus 2:11-14) as they wait for Jesus to come. But right now, such self-control is a real battle, because it denies authority to our sinful nature, which is so easily enflamed by watching the worldliness around us.
This inner war may be intensified where our colleagues or even family have very different values. They may describe our disciplined life as pompous or prudish, and may resent the contrast between our lives and theirs. The internal battle for holiness will even intensify with abuse, ridicule or worse. But do not look for your comfort today, think ahead to the day when everybody, including your detractors at work, will bow to Jesus and admit that your holy lifestyle was right after all. By watching you, some will have been convicted of their need to submit to Jesus; and through your witness, they will receive Christ's welcome too.
Prayer: Heavenly Father. Please forgive me when I assume that this world, and where I have come from, should shape my future. Help me to resist the daily temptations to fall back into worldly ways, and to be strong to say 'No' to wrong desires, even if my closet friends cannot understand why. May my new life of obedience and humility prove to be an effective witness to Your grace and power - so that others may also find peace with God, before Jesus Christ returns. For his Name's sake. Amen.
You can read the verses around this Bible passage from the Internet Bible: - in English, and many other languages
It is not wrong to enjoy a cultural identity. With the shrinkage of our world into a global village, aided by rapid travel, communications, migration and the growth of multinational business organisations, we humanly long to retreat into something special that reminds us of home and our 'roots'. Food, dress, language, dialect and accent all help to shape our understanding of where we have come from. But the Christian should be much more concerned about the culture of heaven - where we are going to. We are to live as foreigners in this sinful world, because our true home is with our Heavenly Father. It is His values which should shape our lives as we await Jesus' return.
No earthbound passion or sinful desire will have any place where Jesus reigns. So, Christians are to consider their sinful desires as foreign to them, and reject them (cf Rom 6:11-14). They are to say 'No' to everything that is not of God, and become self-controlled (cf Titus 2:11-14) as they wait for Jesus to come. But right now, such self-control is a real battle, because it denies authority to our sinful nature, which is so easily enflamed by watching the worldliness around us.
This inner war may be intensified where our colleagues or even family have very different values. They may describe our disciplined life as pompous or prudish, and may resent the contrast between our lives and theirs. The internal battle for holiness will even intensify with abuse, ridicule or worse. But do not look for your comfort today, think ahead to the day when everybody, including your detractors at work, will bow to Jesus and admit that your holy lifestyle was right after all. By watching you, some will have been convicted of their need to submit to Jesus; and through your witness, they will receive Christ's welcome too.
Prayer: Heavenly Father. Please forgive me when I assume that this world, and where I have come from, should shape my future. Help me to resist the daily temptations to fall back into worldly ways, and to be strong to say 'No' to wrong desires, even if my closet friends cannot understand why. May my new life of obedience and humility prove to be an effective witness to Your grace and power - so that others may also find peace with God, before Jesus Christ returns. For his Name's sake. Amen.
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